Rail worker accidentally crushed to death

21 June 2007

AN experienced rail worker was crushed to death between a locomotive and wagon at a Dagenham Dock depot, an inquest heard on Wednesday.

Steve McKay, 42, was shunting the train at the Freightliner rail yard when he became jammed, dying of severe chest injuries almost instantaneously.

A jury at Walthamstow Coroner's Court concluded he had tripped into the pathway of the slow moving train owing to hazardous conditions at the yard.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, the ruled: "He tripped due to a hazardous working environment, most likely a severely cracked and damaged pathway."

Mr McKay was probably walking alongside the train when he fell.

Railway inspector Donald Wilson said the cracks had appeared when the yard was used to load Ford cars on to trains.

He told the inquest the walkway was hazardous, but stressed pathways in other parts of the yard showed signs of repairs.

The jury raised questions about the proximity of a lamppost to the track, which could have caused Mr McKay to stumble into the path of the train.

Mr Wilson acknowledged the lamppost was a hazard and revealed that Freightliner, which takes household waste from several London boroughs, was considering removing it.

Mr McKay's team leader, Martin O'Grady, also suggested his colleague may have tripped and acknowledged the lamppost's location may have contributed to the untimely death.

The court heard the shunter had just attached the spare wagon to the locomotive when the accident happened at about 12.15pm on July 17.

Mr Wilson examined the possibility that Mr McKay, of Chatham, Kent, might have failed to move out of the way after coupling the wagon and the locomotive.

But in a radio message, the shunter indicated to train driver John Pretlove he could start moving the train, meaning he was most certainly off the track.

Mr McKay's widow, Carol, paid tribute to her husband - who had worked on the railways for 18 years.

She said: "We are very pleased with the verdict. We got what we wanted. We wanted his name cleared."

The McKays' barrister, Cheryl Drew, added the verdict reached by the jury may pave the way for legal action against Freightliner.